OCR

I 10 THE’ TWIN VENTRILOQUIBTS.
stop, he looked slowly around and finally in a husky voice
remarked:
“I do not understand it.”
Neither did Ike, for he was convinced that the professor
was not the acrobatic vocalist. The latter, however, was
a man of nerve, a genuine scientist, and he said:
“Young ladies, do not be scared; that linen-wrapped
object, that corpse, that has lain swathed in its funeral
habiliments for over thirty centuries, says he can speak.
We will let him talk.” And from the mummy case came
the statement:
“I think a fellow who has been silent for thirty cen-
turies should have a chance to get a word in.”
Ike was “ on to it.” He was too great an expert not to
fathom the mystery. He had met his match at last.
He was fully assured that the lithe-looking chap who was
studying the ornithological department was the ventriloo
quist, and our hero muttered:
“ You are having lots of fun, mister, but now l’ll give
you a scare.”
The ventriloquist stranger was still gazing in the bird
case, when close to his ear came the startling announce-
ment, seemingly from the bird case:
“ What’s the matter with you? Why do you disturb that
poor old Egyptian who has been asleep for over three
thousand years?”
Ike’s test brought its result. He saw the strange .
youth give a start. He turned about, but he did not
look at the talking stuffed bird; he turned around to see
who it was that had so cleverly matched him. It was a
great game all round. The professor was bewildered, the
ladies were bewildered, and the young fellow at the bird
case, who had bewildered every one else, was himself
bewildered. In fact, Ike, the master, was the only one
who at that moment held the key to the whole mystery, r
and knew just what it was all about. ' '